Harassment and pestering about a payment

Since 2022, my relationship with Discovery Bank had been, until recently, relatively positive. Unfortunately, over the past few days, that experience has deteriorated into what can only be described as an administrative endurance test.

As per standard practice, I received notification around 20 May 2026 of the amount due on my credit card of approximately R 4 850.00, payable by 25 May 2026.

On 25 May 2026:

• R 2 500.00 was transferred from my Discovery savings account; and • A further R 2 500.00 was paid via Absa.

Subsequently, due to an unforeseen emergency, I had to transfer R 3 500.00 out of the account. Notwithstanding this, the minimum payment obligation was still met.

This is where matters began to unravel.

On 28 May 2026 at 09h21, I received an email advising that an additional payment of R 100.00 was required. In good faith, I made a payment of R 150.00 shortly thereafter. Email attached for easy reference.

On 30 May 2026 at 07h15, I received another email, this time advising that the amount due had inexplicably increased to R 342.46. The rationale behind this sudden adjustment remains unclear and perhaps it exists in a dimension not currently accessible to your clients.

At 10h01 (still on 30 May 2026), I received a call from your offices. I explained the payment history and the emergency situation. I was assured the matter would be escalated to a supervisor. Regrettably, this appears to have been more aspirational than factual.

At 12h01 (still on 30 May 2026), I received yet another call. I again explained the situation, only to be informed that there was no record of any earlier communication.

This was particularly enlightening, as it suggested that my 10h01 call had seemingly mysteriously vanished from your system, alternatively had been reclassified as fiction.

On 1 June 2026 at 09h44, the same script was repeated, with continued insistence that R 342.46 remained due as a matter of urgency.

On 1 June 2026 at 15h35, I contacted your call centre to resolve the matter amicably. Despite having already made payments exceeding the initial requirement, I agreed (purely in the interest of resolving this) to pay R 345.00 while on the call. This payment was acknowledged, and I was again assured that the matter would be reviewed by a supervisor. Predictably, there has been no feedback to suggest this occurred.

This morning (2 June 2026), matters escalated further:

• At 05h06, I received yet another email demanding R 342.46,

• At 07h01 and 07h03, two SMS messages followed in quick succession demanding R 342.46,

• At 07h11, after contacting your call centre once more, I was again advised that R 342.46 remained due, despite all prior payments and discussions. I was issued reference number ***4.

At this stage, the issue is no longer the amount in question, but rather the manner this has been handled.

Repeated calls, inconsistent communication, shifting amounts, and a complete absence of meaningful escalation or resolution have turned what should have been a straightforward matter into an unnecessarily frustrating and time-consuming experience.

I am particularly concerned by:

• The contradiction between the R100.00 email (28 May 2026) and subsequent demands for R 342.46,

• The complete lack of record-keeping regarding prior calls,

• The Ninja supervisor that only exists hypothetically, and

• The continued communications after an additional payment were made in good faith, and

• The apparent inability (or unwillingness) to resolve the matter in a coordinated and professional manner.

This brings me to my final position:

I am no longer interested in maintaining any relationship with Discovery Credit Card Division. The persistent follow-ups, which borders on harassment and the failure to address this matter in a coherent and amicable way have made that decision straightforward.

Your communications since 28 May to date, (despite payment having been made), have reinforced my view that your systems are either fundamentally out of sync, or designed with an enthusiasm for persistence that far exceeds what could reasonably be considered acceptable customer engagement.

Going forward:

• I will not be entertaining any further calls from Discovery Credit Card Division or Discovery Bank, and

• I will be blocking your email communications at server level.

When I opened this account, there was an expectation of mutual respect and meaningful engagement. The handling of this matter, particularly the implicit suggestion that I misrepresented prior communications, has fallen short of that standard.

I made a genuine attempt to resolve this matter, but Discovery Credit Card Division went out of their way to offer Call Centre agents the ability to liaise nonchalantly with clients and continuously “test the waters” to see how far they can push a situation.

I tried, you didn’t, have fun, I’m done.